Dozens of Palestinian Protesters Killed as U.S. Embassy Opens in Jerusalem | Sojourners

Dozens of Palestinian Protesters Killed as U.S. Embassy Opens in Jerusalem

A Palestinian demonstrator reacts during a protest against U.S. embassy move to Jerusalem and ahead of the 70th anniversary of Nakba, at the Israel-Gaza border in the southern Gaza Strip May 14, 2018. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

At least 43 Palestinians protesters were killed by Israeli forces along the Gaza border on May 14 —  the deadliest day there since the 2014 war, according to CNN

Palestinians are calling for the "right of return" to territory now claimed by Israel. They are in their seventh week of protests.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced last December plans to relocate the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, in a move to recognize Jersualem as the capital of Israel, upending decades of U.S. policy and outraging Palestinians.

The Palestinian Health Ministry reported more than 1,600 casualties and counting, as the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) accused the Palestinian militant group Hamas of inciting violence and terror against Israel. 

CNN reports:

The military said the protesters threw Molotov cocktails, burned tires, and stones at Israeli soldiers positioned along the fence. The IDF also says it foiled an attack by three armed Palestinians near Rafah, close to the border with Egypt, during "a particularly violent demonstration."

The Palestinian Health Ministry said 443 injuries were caused by live ammunition, 320 by tear gas, and three by rubber-coated bullets.

"Israel is a sovereign nation with the right like every other sovereign nation to determine its own capital," President Trump said in a video message played at the ceremony. "For many years we failed to acknowledge the obvious."

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